Processes and compositions for the reduction of nitrogen oxides in an effluent from the combustion of a carbonaceous fuel have been developed extensively over recent years. With the increased attention to the health risks and environmental damage caused by agents such as smog and acid rain, it is expected that NO.sub.x reduction research will continue to be pursued.
In the past, most processes for the reduction of nitrogen oxides levels have concentrated on achieving maximum NO.sub.x reductions without addressing the problems raised by the production of other pollutants, such as ammonia and carbon monoxide. More recently, in a unique application of NO.sub.x reducing principles, Epperly, Peter-Hoblyn, Shulof and Sullivan, in U.S. patent application entitled "Multi-Stage Process for Reducing the Concentration of Pollutants in an Effluent" having Ser. No. 022,716, filed Mar. 6, 1987, disclose a method of achieving substantial NO.sub.x reductions without the production of a major amount of other pollutants through a multiple stage injection process. The disclosed process, though, is more concerned with maintaining a low level of other pollutants than with achieving a maximum amount of nitrogen oxides reduction because each injection is designed not to maximize NO.sub.x reduction but to minimize the production of other pollutants.
Although effective for reducing the level of nitrogen oxides in an effluent, the fact that the NO.sub.x reduction is not maximized at each injection indicates that further reductions are possible. Furthermore, even in the prior art disclosures which teach methods which may lead to a lessened production of other pollutants, most do so under relatively static conditions and do not account or compensate for changes in effluent conditions, such as effluent temperature variations as load varies, which are often encountered. There exists a present need, therefore, for a process which can achieve maximum nitrogen oxides reductions without the production of substantial amounts of other pollutants under practical effluent conditions.